The Blind Person's Allowance is an extra amount of income that blind people can earn without having to pay tax on it. It is added to your tax-free personal allowance.

Blind Person's Allowance is paid to people in England and Wales who are registered as blind/severely sight impaired (SSI) with a local authority and who have a certificate (or a similar document) to verify this from their doctor.

It is paid to people in Scotland and Northern Ireland who cannot do work for which eyesight is essential and who have a certificate (or a similar document) to verify this from their doctor.

The allowance is the same for everyone who is entitled to it, regardless of age or income.

Blind Person's Allowance

Blind Person's Allowance from April 2024 is £3,070.

So if, for example, you're 58, registered blind with your local authority and have:
an annual salary of £18,000
a Personal Allowance of £12,570
Blind Person's Allowance of £3,070
you only need to pay tax on £2,360 (£18,000 less the sum of £12,570 and £3,070).

Spouse or civil partner's unused allowance

If you have a spouse or civil partner who can claim the allowance but doesn't use it in full (because their total taxable income is less than their total tax-free allowances) you can add any unused amount to your allowance. The calculator can not take into account any unused amount that you are allowed to add to your personal allowance.

If your tax bill isn't high enough to use up all of your Blind Person's Allowance you can use form 575 'Notice of transfer of surplus Income Tax allowances' to transfer any unused allowance to your spouse or civil partner.

If you don't pay tax and your spouse or civil partner does you can still transfer your unused allowance to them.

If you are able to claim Married Couple's Allowance you must transfer any unused allowance when you are transferring your unused Blind Person's Allowance.

If you are not already receiving your spouse or civil partner's allowance you may need to ask your tax office to transfer it to you.

You can get more information on the Blind Person's Allowance from HM Revenue and Customs' Blind Person's Allowance page.